In your haste to avoid the enemy, you catch your foot in a tree root and you are pitched head over heels in a tumble of dust and leaves. Crashing through the undergrowth at the base of the hill, you quickly pick up your weapon and run into the thick forest. The Kraan is no longer circling above, but you can make out the silhouette of two Giaks on the peak of the hill behind.

Wiping the grime from your eyes, you wince as you discover a large bruise on your forehead. Without delay, you run deeper into the safety of the forest.

Instinctively you dive away from the stairs, and land on the stone floor. Your quick reactions have saved your life, for a vast granite block has fallen from the ceiling and crushed the steps, just in front of the lockplate!

Shaken but still in one piece, you get to your feet. A shaft of dull grey light is seeping into the chamber from above, where the stone block was. Through a hole in the ceiling you can see a tangle of graveweed and the cloudy sky above. You clamber out of the tomb and head for the arched south gate of the necropolis as fast as possible. The pointed log walls of the citys outer defence works are now visible.

Two soldiers and a sergeant run towards you, their crossbows aimed at your head. As they get nearer, they recognize your Kai cloak and a look of relief spreads across their faces.

My Lord, says the sergeant, where are the other Kai Masters? We are in desperate need of their wisdom. The Darklords press us most cruelly and our casualties are high.

You inform the brave soldier of the fate of your kinsmen, and the urgency of your mission to see the King. He takes you back to the barges where an officer accompanies you on horseback towards the high walls and the main gate of Holmgard.

The slimy creature lets out a long, ghastly death-cry and collapses. You are near to panic and scramble to your feet, grabbing what you think to be your belt from the jaws of the dead beast. You can see light in the far distance, and you sprint for it as fast as you can. When you finally emerge into the daylight, you fall onto the leafy ground and fight for breath in painful gasps.

Slowly sitting upright, you notice that you are still wearing your beltyou had not lost it after all. What you grabbed from the jaw of the Burrowcrawler was a leather strap with a small pouch and a sheathed Dagger halfway along it. You break open the clasp to find it contains 20 Gold Crowns. You may take both the Dagger and the Crowns if you are able to.

Feeling a little better now, you gather your Equipment together and push on eastwards into the forest.

As you race across the open field towards the wood, a Kraan dives at you and claws your arm. Before you can fight back, it has flown off again, shrieking with cold malice.

You enter the wood, but you have lost 2 ENDURANCE points.

You walk for nearly an hour along the twisting rivers edge. Beyond the next turn you can hear the faint noise of battle. You carefully climb a steep hillock to get a better view of the area.

After what seems an eternity of struggling, you reach the peak of the steep hill. Behind you, above the canopy of trees, you can see the still smouldering remains of the monastery. To the north, a column of jet-black smoke rises high into the sky. Small orange tongues of flame flicker at its base. Your heart sinks as you realize that the port of Toran is ablaze.

Suddenly, a piercing cry above warns you that a Kraan is about to attack. It is about thirty yards away and diving for the kill.

From the top of the tower you can see above the trees in all directions. Far to the north, a column of jet-black smoke rises high into the sky. Small orange tongues of flame flicker at its base. Your heart sinks as you realize that the port of Toran is ablaze. From the southwest, the wind carries the noise of battle. It is close; no more than five miles at most.

On the floor of the watchtower is a large oblong box.

You pull up your hood and drop down behind the rocks that litter the mouth of the cave. Holding your breath, you curl up into a tight ball, and completely cover yourself with your green cloak. Only a few minutes later the Giaks clamber over the rocky ledge outside, their evil yellow eyes furtively searching every crevice of the hillside.

Then cursing in their strange tongue, they leave the ledge and start to climb towards the peak. You silently thank your old Masters for teaching you the Kai Discipline of Camouflageit has probably saved your life on this occasion.

Upon seeing you emerge from the woods, the Giak officer shouts Ogot! Ogot! to his cowering troops, who flee the ruins and run to the safety of the forest.

Shaking his mailed fist at you, the black-clad Giak screams, RANEG ROGAG OKORGADAKA OKAK ROGAG GAJ! before leaving. Surveying the scene of battle, you count over fifteen Giak dead lying among the broken pillars of Raumas.

The young wizard wipes his brow and walks towards you, his hand extended in friendship.

You carefully insert the Key and turn it clockwise. You hear a dull clickthe Key works. You lift out the pin, and the large granite door slowly swings towards you on hidden hinges. The grey half-light of the Graveyard floods into the tomb. The exit is overgrown with graveweed and you suffer many cuts to your face and arms as you fight your way through to the surface.

Looking back, you see the tomb door slowly close and a cruel inhuman laugh seems to rise out of the very ground on which you stand. In blind panic, you race through the eerie necropolis towards the south gate.

Within a few minutes, you can see the Kraan hovering over a hilltop behind you. At a quick count you can make out at least sixteen of these horrible creatures, each of which has at least two Giaks riding upon its back. They are armed with long spears and wear tall pointed helmets of dull bronze. You hear the excited grunts of the Giaks. They have spotted you.

You jump for the entrance of the tunnel some twenty-five feet below, but your boot gets caught in a thorny briar and you hang helplessly upside downweaponless and vulnerable. Fortunately for you the end is swift: As the first Giak lance pierces your heart, death is instantaneous.

As the creature dies, its body slowly dissolves into a vile green liquid. You notice that the grass and plants beneath the smoking fluid are beginning to shrivel and die. But a large valuable looking Gem lies on the ground near to the decaying body.

As you descend the ridge towards the Graveyard of the Ancients, you are aware of a strange mist and cloud that swirls all around this grey and forbidding place, blocking the sun and keeping the Graveyard in perpetual gloom.

A creeping chill seems to penetrate your very bones. Your horse becomes startled and no matter how you urge him on, he refuses to go any nearer to this dreadful place. So you must leave your horse and press on by foot.

Fatigued by your exertions, you stop to rest for a few minutes at a fallen tree. You notice a large bundle, beneath the trunk.

Surrounded by thorny briars and closely packed roots, you see the entrance of a tunnel disappearing into the hillside beyond. It is approximately seven feet in height and just over ten feet wide. As you get closer, you can feel a slight breeze coming from the inky blackness. If the other end of this tunnel emerges on the far side of the hill, it could save you many hours of difficult climbing. But it could also harbour unknown danger.

You walk for nearly ten minutes along a dark and winding corridor, and then start to climb a steep staircase to a small wooden door. The man presses a secret catch and the door opens. You enter a large, plushly decorated bedroom with a huge marble bath that takes up one corner of the room. The man suggests that you refresh yourself here whilst he seeks an audience with the King.

You quickly bathe and change into some white robes that have been left out on a large marble table. Shortly, the man returns and leads you through a long corridor lined with exquisite tapestries. You finally arrive at a large door guarded by two soldiers wearing silver armour.

You are about to meet the King.

You have cut your way through the thick undergrowth for nearly half an hour when you hear the beat of wings high above the trees. Looking up you can just make out the shape of a Kraan approaching from the north. It is one of the monsters that attacked the monastery and on its back are two grey-skinned creatures armed with long spears.

These are Mountain Giaksevil servants of the Darklords, full of hatred and malice. Many centuries ago, their ancestors were used by the Darklords to build the infernal city of Helgedad, which lies in the volcanic wastelands beyond the Durncrag range of mountains. The construction of the city was long and torturous and only the strongest of the Giaks survived the heat and poisonous atmosphere of Helgedad.

Hidden by the trees, you freeze, keeping absolutely still as the Kraan passes overhead and disappears towards the south. When you are sure that it has gone, you move off once again into the forest.

As the stream vanishes up into the rocky hillside, you can see on the track above four soldiers and their officer. They wear the uniform of the Kings army.

As you approach, the black bird flies off above the trees and soon disappears from view. You search the tree on which it was perched but find nothing unusual. Rather than waste any more precious time, you continue off along the track.

You rush into the clearing and take the Giaks completely by surprise. Without a moments hesitation, you strike out at the one nearest to you. He is dead before his body hits the ground. The other Giaks unsheathe their curved swords and attack you. You must fight them one at a time.

Just as you remove the ornate pin, a loud crack deafens you.

Pick a number from the Random Number Table.

When you awake, you find yourself lying at the foot of a steep slope in a tangle of long grasses. Your Backpack and Weapons are missing and your head aches violently. You cannot tell how long you have been unconscious, but you realize that time is running out and you must press on. Standing up, you notice your Backpack and Weapon on the slope above. They must have broken free when you fell. You quickly retrieve them and move off into the trees ahead.

You quickly sidestep just as a long dagger shatters the glass top of the counter. A swarthy youth is attacking you and you must fight him.

You gallop forward to meet the oncoming Doomwolf and rider, your Weapon raised to strike. The Giak sees you and unsheathes his scimitar. You must fight both Giak and Doomwolf as one enemy.

The guards do not believe your story and refuse to let you enter. Your escort disappears into the crowd and you are left alone to find your way in this confused city.

Shocked, and then dejected by such a rebuff, you are carried along by the crowds until you find yourself at the entrance to the Guildhall. It stands at one side of the Guild Bridge which crosses the River Eledil near where it joins the Holmgulf.

As your voice echoes through the trees, the stranger slowly turns to face you. Your heart pounds and your blood freezes as you realize that the stranger is not human. It is a Vordak, a hideous lieutenant of the Darklords and one of the undead. A piercing scream fills your ears, and the creature raises a huge black mace above its head and charges at you. Frozen with horror, you can also feel the Vordak attacking you with the force of its mind.

Deduct 2 points from your COMBAT SKILL unless you have the Kai Discipline of Mindshield. You must fight this creature. It is immune to Mindblast.

You are held by the mass of tangled branches and roots. Eventually you free your right hand, grab your weapon, and hack your way slowly through the foliage to the clearer forest beyond. Your cloak is torn in several places and your left arm is cut and badly bruised above the elbow.

You are weak and dizzy. You can no longer feel your legs and they refuse to bear your weight. You try to crawl for the door but the robber jumps on you and pins you to the ground.

You pull up the hood of your green Kai cloak and hold your breath as the Kraan circles above. After a few minutes, you hear the frantic curses of the Giaks. The beating of Kraan wings fades, as they disappear towards the west. Your quick reactions have saved you from capture and likely death.

Lodged deep in the rib cage of the skeleton is a Spear. It is in good condition and you may take it if you wish and are able to.

The trees start to thin out, and just ahead you can make out the silhouette of an old log cabin beneath an oak tree. This hut seems to have been abandoned and there is little of apparent value left behind. Opening a small chest near the main door, you discover bunches of twigs that have been tied together with strong twine. One end of each bundle has been coated with pitch. They are Torches. Next to the chest are a Short Sword and a Tinderbox. You may take them and a Torch if you wish but make sure that you mark them on your Action Chart.

Closing the door of the cabin, you head off along an overgrown path towards the northeast.

Raising your boot to kick away the dead snake, your heart skips a beat as you realize that it was a Red Marshviper. There is no known cure for its venomous bite! You decide that to go any further in this direction would be suicide. Carefully retracing your steps, you eventually reach firm ground and continue on your mission.

He is a young blond-haired youth with deep brooding eyes. His face is lined with exhaustion and the grime of battle, and his long sky-blue robes bear evidence of living rough in the wilds. He shakes your hand and bows. My eternal thanks, Kai Lord. My powers are nearly drained. Had you not come to my aid, I fear I would have ended my days atop a Giak lance.

He is weak and unsteady on his feet. You take his arm and sit him down upon a fallen pillar where you listen intently to what he has to say.

My name is Banedon. I am journeyman to the Brotherhood of the Crystal Star, which is the Magicians Guild of Toran. My Guildmaster has sent me to your monastery with this urgent message. He removes a vellum envelope from inside his robes and hands it to you.

As you see, I have opened the letter and read its contents. When the war started, I was on the highway with two travelling companions. The Kraan attacked us and we lost each other in the forest during our escape.

The letter is a warning to the Kai Lords that the Darklords have mustered a vast army beyond the Durncrag Range. The Guildmaster urges the Kai to cancel the celebrations of Fehmarn and prepare for war.

I fear we were betrayed, says Banedon, his head bowed in sorrow.

One of my order, a brother called Vonotar, had explored the forbidden mysteries of the Black Art. Ten days ago he denounced the Brotherhood and killed one of our Elders. He has since disappeared. It is rumoured that he now aids the Darklords.

You tell Banedon what has happened at the monastery, and of your mission to warn the King. Silently, he removes a gold chain from around his neck and hands it to you. On the chain is a small Crystal Star Pendant. It is the symbol of my Brotherhood, and we are both truly brothers in this hour of darkness. It is a talisman of good fortunemay it protect you on your road ahead.

You thank him, place the chain around your neck, and slip the Crystal Star inside your shirt. (Remember to mark this on your Action Chart.)

Banedon bids you farewell. We must leave this place lest the Giaks return with more of their loathsome kind to put an end to us. I must return to my Guild. I bid you farewell, my brother. May the luck of the gods go with you.

You enter the Chamber of State, a magnificent hall decorated lavishly in white and gold. The King and his closest advisers are studying a large map spread upon a marble plinth in the centre of the chamber. Their faces are lined with worry and concentration. A silence fills the hall as you tell of the death of your kinsmen and of your perilous journey to the citadel. As you finish your story, the King approaches and takes your right hand in his.

Lone Wolf, you have selfless courage: the quality of a true Kai Lord. Your journey here has been one of great peril and although your news comes as a grievous blow, the spirit of your determination is like a beacon of hope to us all in this dark hour. You have brought great honour to the memory of your Masters, and for that we praise you.

You receive the praise and heartfelt thanks of the entire hallan honour that brings a certain redness to your young face. The King raises his hand and all the voices cease.

You have done all that Sommerlund could have asked of a loyal son, but she is greatly in need of you still. The Darklords are powerful once more and their ambition knows no bounds. Our only hope lies within Durenor with the power that once defeated the Darklords an age ago. Lone Wolf, you are the last of the Kaiyou have the skills. Will you journey to Durenor and return with the Sommerswerd, the sword of the sun? Only with that gift of the gods may we crush this evil and save our land.

If you wish to accept the quest of the Sommerswerd, begin your adventure with Book 2 of the Lone Wolf adventures:

Fire on the Water